What summer is really all about...

Dear Loyal Readers,

I'm sorry to have missed yet more posts but I'm recovering from surgery and haven't really had much to post about. What's that? Oh, no I'm fine. I just had my gallbladder removed. It's really no big deal, and I'm fine now. But I have been thinking about you all and recently have been invited by a friend to help her start a lolita boutique after we're all done with school and travel.

What you may not know about me is that I love to design clothes and I actually have a lot of designs already. Fan Plus Friend (my favorite bargan lolita website) is having a design contest which can be found here. The submission date is almost done, but the voting period will be starting soon. I urge you to vote for my submissions and participate in the next contests as it is a great way to get your very own designed clothes (if you win of course). I'm submitting two designs:

Again, please vote for my submissions! You have to register with their site in order to do so, but that only takes a second and it's free.

~Y. McLeod.

A letter to Mana-sama

Loyal readers:

I'm working on a long article about what is and isn't lolita. It's sort of a guide for newcomers to the fashion, and something that I hope will spark a debate among the veterans of the culture. Unfortunately, it's taking longer than expected, and in an attempt to let you all know that I haven't forgotten you, I've decided to post a light hearted break up letter to Mana-sama. I of course do not know Mana-sama personally, and we were never dating but...you'll see why I had to write this letter.

Dearest Mana-sama,

As the ambassador of lolita to the world, it was only natural that I love you. You were a god to me, and the Gothic Lolita Bible was your holy word. Alas, it is foolish for a mere mortal such as myself to love a god. Knowing our love to be ill-fated, I could not help but stray and (though it pains me to say this) I have found another. His name is Mr. B the Gentleman Rhymer, and he has made music everything that I have wanted it to be by bringing the Queen’s English to hip-hop. Though he has not changed my entire life as you have, I find it unfair to you to split my affections like this. I will always remember the times we had…blasting your music in my bathroom as I prepared for Gaskells, swooning over how beautiful of a woman you often are, and being secretly jealous of your delicious androgyny. And I will always, always hold lolita dear to my heart. Please don’t be angry, and I hope we can still be friends.

Sincerely,

~Y. McLeod

Some of you may have absolutely no idea who I’m talking about in this letter so allow me to clear things up. Mana-sama is most known for his amazing cross-dressing abilities, vow of silence, and his involvement with the band Malice Mizer and his own band Moi-Dix-Moi. He is also the man who popularized the gothic lolita subculture by appearing as a gothic lolita in Malice Mizer and an aristocrat in Moi-Dix-Moi. EGL (Elegant Gothic Lolita) and EGA (Elegant Gothic Aristocrat) are his terms. He is also known for his brand Moi-Meme Moitie, and for founding the Gothic Lolita Bible (his holy word) along with another musician named Kana.  Not much is know about Mana-sama...things like his age, if he's married, and even where he was born are known to only a few. We don't even know his real name. But honestly, that doesn't matter. He has contributed a whole lot to the lolita subculture, and for that we thank him. Did I mention he signed Kanon Wakeshima? He did. Both pictures are of Mana-sama. He's deliciously androgynous, as previously stated. 

The second person mentioned is Mr. B the Gentleman Rhymer and unfortunately, not much is know about him as far as private life goes either. But again, this really doesn't matter. He has, quite simply, revolutionized music. Because of Mr B, we now have a genre of music called Chap-Hop which is absolutely perfect for lolita. He brought proper English to hip-hop, along with his banjolele (which is one of the coolest instruments on earth). I was introduced to his music through an ex (a real one) who saw him in an interview from about 2008 at the Steampunk Con in England (the interview can be found here) and I was stunned. After doing a bunch of research, and listening to his music on myspace over and over, I finally got his CD and have been in love ever since. You really must listen to his music and watch a music video or two, they're funny and musically great. I plan on going to see him as soon as I can when I get to England. 

I'll be honest for a moment here loyal readers. That picture of Mr B is my desktop background...and how could he not be with a mustache like that?

~Y. McLeod

Lolinspiration

Oh Loyal Readers,

I have had a busy, busy week this week full of working long days in the hot, hot sun. But I haven't forgotten you, and to be honest I feel a bit of a twinge of guilt when I don't write here for a long time. So here I am with a new entry (that hopefully I can finish before my ride to work shows up..).

It's a new month and with new months come new beginnings. As of this month, I will officially abandon my old set up of updates every Monday, Wednesday and Friday with set topics...It was a set up that was more tailored to me being home and having time to sew, cook, and what not. Though I did make a delicious, healthy dinner last night...

...But I digress. I will update as much as I can, and try to keep my posts varied. If I don't respond to your comments in a timely manner, forgive me. I'm a bit of an absent minded lady and I forgot to set an email address for notifications of comments. But now I have, and I will be alerted as soon as I get your comments and try to respond at once.

~*~
Sometimes in the daily hustle and bustle of life, I loose sight of my own elegance and my duty as a lady of lace and beauty. I get caught up in all the things I have to do, get grumpy, and my posture goes by the wayside. I forget to expholiate, I forget that I have this beautiful, elegant, educated, flowery, refined lady inside of me and it seems as though my life looses meaning.

To prevent this, I've collected lolita/classy insipred artwork in an easy to access folder on my computer. There is, of course, the mandatory Kira Imai who did a lot of art for Angelic Pretty. Her work is as versatile as lolita itself--she has a lot of sweet inspired pictures as well as darker, more gothic ones. She also has more classic works and some that are just quirky. Her work looks simple, and usually features one or two lolitas in fantastic dresses doing something like eating cake or carrying a doll, but at the same time you can see the amazing passion behind her paintings.


I also have Alphonse Mucha whose work is stunningly beautiful. He was a Czech painter who died in the late 1930s. There is something about his work, and the way he paints women in general that is both original and classical. It almost harkens back to stained glass windows, but he still brings a freshness to his paintings. Perhaps it is his themes? Perhaps the colors he uses? Perhaps the general looks of ease on the faces of his subjects? In any event, there is something about Kira Imai's paintings that made the link between the two artists almost flawless. Take a look at the above picture and this one, focusing on the linework and the simplicity of the backgrounds. Both Imai and Mucha have very little going on in their works, but at the same time there is still a lot there.

Lastly, of course, I have random paintings of Victorian women from artists who I do not recognize. They're all in the classical style of painting that makes the Victorian era look like it was covered in gossamer.

Whenever I feel like I've wandered of the ribbon lined path, I open my folder, turn on some music and set the pictures to slideshow. It works for me like an energy drink--a sudden burst of lolita energy that makes me want to drink tea and put on my best dress. I implore you to go on the internet and find pieces of art, or even items and people who inspire you to be the best lolita you can be. Add a bit of elegance to your everyday, even if you can't dress lolita at all times you can still be lolita at all times. If you have little reminders, little lolinspirations to help you remember, it will make constant elegance second nature.

~Y. McLeod